HAS THE EU LEFT AN ETS GET OUT CLAUSE FOR NON-EU AIRLINES TO EXPLOIT BURIED IN THE WORDING?

By Victoria
January 24, 2012 15:11

Countries opposing a European Union law that charges airlines for carbon emissions should consider seeking waivers by adopting equivalent emission reduction measures, the EU’s new envoy to India said on yesterday.
“There is space in the legislation that has not yet been explored regarding exemptions for equivalent measures,” said Joao Cravinho, the EU ambassador to New Delhi. “There is room for negotiation, not for annulling the law. But there is within the law itself the possibility of exploring the avenues of exemption.”
The EU law allows for equivalent measures to be taken into account, which analysts said would cover other ways of reducing emissions in the airline sector. The rules do not specify what could constitute equivalent measures, Cravinho said. “Flights coming from countries that have equivalent measures can be exempted. So we need to look at what equivalent measures can be,” he said.
This news could well mean that carbon offset programs such as passenger offset and/or biofuels could be used to reduce the requirement for EU carbon credits by airlines outside of the EU. However the question is can EU airlines also take advantage of this? That, along with many other questions, will be debated at the ETS Forum at the Hyatt Regency Hotel on the 20th April 2012. To book contact dan@aviationnews-online.com today.